Clarke, a Truss ally, says Tory party should ditch PM ahead of general election
No 10 has not responded to the Simon Clarke article, but Kevin Hollinrake, the postal services minister, and someone who has had a friendly relationship with Rishi Sunak for years, was doing the morning broadcast round this morning and he said Conservative MPs overwhelmingly disagreed with what Clarke said. He told Times Radio:
I don’t think [Clarke’s] right. I think the parliamentary party and the wider party is overwhelmingly in support of the prime minister. Quite rightly too. I don’t agree, I don’t think Simon’s right on this …
Of course, some people panic at a difficult time, but this is not the overwhelming view of the party.
Speaking privately, other Tory MPs were even more forthright. “Not sure we should be taking top tips on leadership from Liz Truss’s right hand,” one minister told the Guardian.
“What the bloody hell is Simon Clarke doing?” said a Tory MP who backed Truss in the 2022 leadership contest.
